1.03.2008

After a brief visit to the Los Angeles office of Kevin Federline's attorney, Mark Vincent Kaplan, where she was scheduled to be give a deposition, Britney Spears left the building. The singer, wearing a hot pink dress and heels, arrived Thursday morning for her deposition after numerous previous failures to show. Less than an hour later, she drove off in her white Mercedes without speaking to the press. Spears, 26, was expected to be grilled about her past drug and alcohol use, her apparent failure to follow court orders and other matters that might pertain to her parenting skills. Asked if he got information he was looking for, Kaplan replied stoically, "In 14 minutes?" "A deposition can be emotionally draining, because Kevin's lawyer can ask very personal questions about her relationship with her kids – and she'll be under oath," says L.A. family lawyer Lynn Soodik, who's not involved with the case. On Wednesday, Spears's legal team filed a request with a court asking that it be removed from the singer's custody case, citing a "breakdown in communications" with Spears. A hearing in that matter is set for Feb. 4. Until then, the firm of Trope & Trope still represents her. Kaplan has already completed a number of depositions with Spears's associates, including her longtime friend, Alli Sims, former manager Larry Rudolph and former bodyguard Daimon Shippen. Kaplan will use evidence gathered from the depositions to try to persuade the court that Federline, 29, should be granted primary physical custody of their children, Preston, 2, and Jayden, 1, in any final ruling.